Outdoorsmen Adventures.com

Holly Chow, Winnipeg, a full-time guide for Cats

on the Red at Lockport, Manitoba, nets a catfish for a client. (Submitted photo)

Reprinted from the Sioux City Journal

LOCKPORT, Manitoba — When Holly Chow steps into her guide boat, she has to catch fish.

After all, anyone with the nickname, “Mama Cat” has to live up to her reputation.

And she does. A lifetime of experience in waters throughout the country sees to that.

But she didn’t really begin to fish for catfish until last spring. That’s when she began guiding full time for Stu McKay’s “Cats on the Red” resort.

“A typical day would be eight guys standing at the dock and they’d see two boats there and they’d see the girl and they’d go, ‘Oh, god, somebody’s got to fish with the girl,’” she said. “Then we’d come in with 24 fish and they’d go, “We were with ‘Mama Cat!’”

The Red River below the Lockport dam is recognized worldwide as a premier big catfish river in the summertime.

“The average size channel cat is about 20 pounds,” Holly said. “I would be ashamed if I took you out and we didn’t get three over 36 inches weighing between 24 and 26 pounds.”… Continue reading

Here we go again, we’re heading into the fall, where has our summer gone?

It’s that time of the year, the time our kids are heading back to school. As the temperatures decrease, water temperatures will start to cool and fishing will pick up.

With all of these things happening: you can bet it won’t be long before the good fall fishing season is here.

With the water temperatures declining, all species of fish will really start to feed heavily.

When fishing in the fall, it’s a good idea to use larger live bait.

During the fall, fish are on a mission, trying to fatten up before the freeze up.  Chubs and larger minnows seem to attract the larger fish, out producing the smaller baits.

In the rivers, you’ll find the walleye, sauger and smallmouth moving shallow to clean up any remaining baitfish or the crawfish that have survived the summer.

In our lakes, bluegills, crappies, largemouth bass and pike will move into and along the edge of the weeds, picking off insects and of course each other.

Lake walleyes will now be found spread out over the mud flats or cruising the weeds looking for a late season snacks.… Continue reading

Reprinted from the Sioux City Journal

Drifting and trolling are two tactics for catfish

When it comes to catfishing, most anglers think of sitting on the bank watching the tip of your rod for a bite.

Catfishermen working from the bank are advised to move often in an effort to find the fish.

That also holds true for fishing from a boat, but you have other options than anchoring.

Pat Carter, a catfishing specialist from Elk Point, S.D., has taught me that over the years.

It was no different last week when we decided to meet up at McCook Lake to see if the fish were biting.

It was a beautiful day. The sun was shinning and the wind, for once, was not howling. It was, instead, light and variable.

Just right for drift fishing.… Continue reading

Reprinted from the Sioux City Journal

OLIVET, S.D. — When Gary Howey and I arrived at the James River riverside park in Olivet just after dawn, we saw Doug Haas fishing for our bait.

He was casting a slip bobber beneath which was a small hook baited with a garden variety worm. He pitched this combination into the swift waters below the old low head dam.

We knew he was seeking skip jack, more properly known as Goldeye, a small silvery fish which when cut into small pieces and applied to a 5/0 hook makes excellent  bait for big channel catfish.

“I’ve got three,” he said. “Like to have a couple more.”

But Gary and I had brought shad so I felt confident we would have enough bait.… Continue reading

Anyone who has ever had the opportunity to tangle with a big Catfish knows how powerful these big cats can be.

They’re not the prettiest fish that swims in the water, but they are plentiful, fun to catch and are great eating.

Cats are bottom hugging creatures. Their eyesight is not all that good, so they depend on their sense of smell and taste to find their food. The barbells that protrude from their upper lip and their lips are covered with taste receptors, helping the catfish to locate a meal.

In the upper Midwest, you’ll find three species of catfish: the Channel, Blue and the Flathead.

In this article, we’re going to be talking about the Channel Catfish.More…

Channel Catfish are the most abundant species in the upper Midwest and perhaps the entire U.S. They can be found in most rivers, ponds, small lakes and reservoirs throughout our area.

You’ll find them below the dam at Gavin’s Point and throughout the river system. Look for Channel Catfish in the deeper holes below the spillway, behind the rubble below the turbines and in snag infested areas adjacent to deeper water.

They’re opportunists when it comes to what they eat. They’ll feed on just about anything they can get their mouth around.

I’ve had the opportunity to fish for Channel Cats throughout the Midwest and in Canada and am fortunate to say that two of the Channel Catfish that          (Flathead Catfish)                             I caught were line class world records taken on cut bait made from Sucker and Goldeye.… Continue reading